International group has instruments stolen

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) - They are called ‘Alash Ensemble’ the four men hail from Tuva, a remote village a world away in Siberia.

The group came to Albuquerque as part of a multi-city U.S. tour to perform at the 'Festival of Asian Cultures' downtown.

“Today a big part of our ensemble is going to be missing,” said Alash Manager Sean Quirk.

The group was staying at the Motel 6 off of Avenida Cesar Chavez Saturday night, early Sunday morning they awoke to find their rental had been broken into.

“The window was busted open, all of our instruments were taken, some of our bags were taken some of guys don’t have anything to wear, all of our costumes were taken,” Quirk said.

The instruments are all one of a kind and handmade out of wood, skin and hair in Tuva, Quirk said that makes them priceless.

“It’s very shocking, I mean its a loss of unbelievable magnitude for us,” Quirk said, adding “its like losing a limb or a couple of limbs, its just really indescribable how difficult this is.

Despite the theft, Alash did perform at the festival Sunday, but continuing the rest of their tour could prove more difficult.

Some of the member’s passports and visas were also stolen.

“I can say I’ve traveled many thousands of miles, I’ve been to many countries and I’ve faced many difficult situations and this is one of the most difficult that I’ve had to deal with ever,” Quirk said.

The group will be staying in New Mexico for another performance, anyone with information on the missing instruments is asked to call Albuquerque Police.